One more day left.. and i'm so called "free" from the clutches from the SAF. Haha, like Louis said, we've still got reservist baby. And it's gonna be 10 long years. Blessing or curse? I leave u guys to decide.

Went back today, and seems like everyone is surprised to see me. Somehow everyone has assumed tt i've already gotten back my i/c or smthing. Yea, assume makes an ass of u & me. Anyways, since everyone din expect my return, naturally i also assumed tt i dun have to return at all. Haha. Self declared half day off myself today. Not tt there's anything for me to do today.

A recap of my NS life:

Enlisted direct into Naval Diving Unit for my BMT. Yea so i have no idea how tekong looks like, and how it functions inside. I'm a navy guy right from the start. Seriously speaking, back then, everyone dreaded being in NDU, cos truthfully speaking it's the toughest unit in the SAF. Yea, tot u Commandoes are big fuck? Try coming to NDU man. However, i felt proud of the fact tt i'm in there, cos i tot it's a good chance to prove myself to my brother tt i'm not a wimp (more on that later.). He's been my role model all this while, so this is the chance to show tt i can beat him. If i make it as a diver, then i'll strive even harder to make it as a diver officer. Tt deserves some big time respect.

But then, there's a problem. I can't swim! Haha, but of course being the siao on i was, i psychoed myself tt i can pass the swimming tests. I'll try my best to learn how to swim and then try to excel in those swimming tests. After all it's my only weak pt, cos for the "land side" i fared pretty well. To brag alittle, i was the 3rd fastest runner in my whole company... and it matters, cos we judge a person's fitness by his 2.4km timing. Imagine being with 100+ sch captains and national reps, i could come out 3rd.... not bad huh.

Sure i learnt how to swim, in fact i could do 20 laps now with no problem. But i realised quickly tt NDU is more than just plain swimming. U need water confidence. Lots of it. Which i do not have. I found myself struggling with all the weird water activities. And yea...

I fear the water depth.

So after numerous attempts on the water tests and failing each time, I gave up cos i know i couldnt overcome my water phobia thingy. Fortunately, there was sort of an opening for pple to get out back then. So i decided to opt out of it. It wasnt easy, cos being the 3rd fitess guy, they wouldnt let me off so easily. Hence, the chao keng-ing comes in. Just so i could get out of there. There was no pt failing each batch and joining the next batch of trainees so tt i can get a shot and being a diver, cos ultimately i know i can't make it anymore.

So luckily i got posted out. To Changi Defence Squadron.

They are sort of having new course called the Sea Soldier Course. And i was enrolled into the second batch. One of the best time of my NS life, cos the course is damn slack. To me la, after all the training there is totally nothing compared to what i had in NDU. Yea, so it was an easy ride for me. Add in the fact tt they dun really have much for us, so we can relax by abt 5 every day.

Enjoy. And it's also tt time tt i got in touch with the guitar. Thanks Jack and Melvin for lending me ur guitars whenever i wanted to play.

SSC was fun, cos it was relaxing and we got to do some pretty useless stuff. Like attempting to row a raft to East Coast Park, to realise tt we can't cos we are upstream. And FIBUA, Fighting In Built Up Areas. Kinda like Counterstrike, but the instructors seem to have infinite lives and refuse to die. Stupid stuff. But heck, i enjoy the company ard me.

After the course i got posted to Tuas Defence Squadron. Good shit, cos it's near my hse. Imagine if i stayed in Changi. So for the rest of my NSF life i was there, guarding that stupid base, doing security checks from morning till night. It's a 24 hr thing, but the good part is get to go home the next day.

So u guys understand y i'm always online whereas other pple are always stuck in camp?

This lifestyle, kinda suited me. Cos i have alot of free time, which i spent learning driving, forming a band, going for a guitar course, and other miscellaneous stuff. I'd say i've accomplished quite alittle bit during my NS stint, whereas other pple would have felt tt their youth was wasted.

But the regimentation in my unit sux, cos our superiors are brainless. Yea or so i felt. Yup, they're always giving stupid orders, then changing their minds. Like imposing rules on discipline which everyone in the navy is supposed to follow, but they themselves dun follow. So how r we supposed to do our job when our superiors are infringing the rules themselves?

Remember, we are the so called police in the base. We catch pple for breaking rules. But we ourselves break them. Wot irony.

Nvm, it's all over now. No more such shit for the rest of my life. In retrospect i've learnt quite alot of stuff which i felt tt the girls are missing out:

1. From NDU: The most stupid kind of pple WILL exist. Yes there are really pple THAT stupid. It's a hard and sad fact, so learn to identify those pple..and avoid them like the plague. U never know how they are gonna sabo u man.
2. From NDU: There's no physical limitations. There's only mental limitations. U are weak because ur mind is weak. If u set ur mind to do something, there's nothing u cannot accomplish. <-- extremely true
3. From CDS: Some stuff u learn ultimately has no use for what u are gonna do.
4. From CDS: Seriously, it's damn easy to chao keng (act sick). It's just whether u have the integrity or not.
5. From TDS: Interpersonal skills are important. U need to be able to interact well with everybody to get ur job done. And also i've learnt not to offend certain classes of people. Cos we need their help.
6. From TDS: Ultimately it's just a job. Get a life outside your job

Finally the rant has finished. Some of my thoughts are lost along the way, but heck. Tml is the day. Am i happy? I'm just relieved tt my duty is over.

That's all